Purchasing
Background Purchasing divisions from the City and the County are to merge to save money. The merger was announced in 2006 and was to happen in 2006. A vote happened in County Council on March 6, 2007. City Council also passed a measure to merge and to ask for No Sweatshop Purchases. Insights The city and county have been negotiating the county's takeover of purchasing since mid-2004. They had hoped the change would have taken effect Jan. 1, 2006. Allegheny County has looser bidding requirements while the City of Pittsburgh has imposed more rules and regulations on itself. Allegheny County is less concerned than the City of Pittsburgh about the County's involvement of minority- and women-owned businesses. Allegheny County is without rules barring the purchase of goods produced with sweatshop labor. The City of Pittsburgh has ordinances that do not allow the buying of goods from vendors who produced good with sweatshop labor. Platform.For-Pgh.org * Purchasing planks from Mark Rauterkus Links * General Services Media After three years of wrangling and stalling, Pittsburgh and Allegheny County are purchasing partners. :By Mike Wereschagin, TRIBUNE-REVIEW, Wednesday, March 7, 2007 County Council on Tuesday night unanimously ratified an agreement sent to it Feb. 13, 2007, from City Council that will allow the two governments to pool their purchasing power and save about $1 million each on things such as road salt, computers and office supplies. The agreement is expected to apply to about $10 million in purchases a year. County Council and Chief Executive Dan Onorato had negotiated a deal with outgoing Mayor Tom Murphy in 2005 to jointly buy $75 million worth of goods, but City Council voted to kill the arrangement. Onorato and Mayor Luke Ravenstahl announced the revised deal Jan. 23, 2007. "This is a watered-down version, in my opinion," said Council President Rich Fitzgerald, D-Squirrel Hill. Still, he said, it's a small step toward resolving the city's financial problems. "The city is over $1 billion in debt. ... It's not going to occur today or next year, but there will be a day of reckoning. The more we do now, the better off we'll be when that day comes," Fitzgerald said. To make the agreement compatible with city law, County Council unanimously passed a separate bill meant to ensure that whatever the county buys isn't made in a sweatshop. The purchasing agreement has for years been cited by some as a quick and easy merger that could save the city and county money. That it took three years to complete has made some worry that other, more complex mergers -- like combining the city and county detective bureaus or parks departments -- might not be possible. "I hope that's not the case. This took too long. I'll be the first to say that," Fitzgerald said. "We have to do more." Prior Media * Merger of county, city purchasing departments seems closer by Dan Reynolds, Pittsburgh Business Times - November, 2006 - A merger of the City of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County purchasing departments seems closer to fruition a year after it was approved by the county. * News of purchasing merger in P-G on Nov 29, 2005. Cooperate already Cooperation between the two governmental entities, The City of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County, is often absent. Generally, the operations of the city and county do not mix. The City of Pittsburgh has had seven employees. The Act 47 plan calls for two positions. The City is to merge its purchasing department into the county's purchasing. In January 2005, the two departments are going to co-locate. The city's department was to end July 1, 2005. It didn't happen. County Manager should be invited to present before City Council. The conversation about the merger of departments needs to include the County Managers. Allegheny County has been hiring purchasing agents in 2004, said Jim Motznik. Two Allegheny County employees departed their jobs in the fall 2004 early buy outs announced by the County Executive. Intergovernmental Most of the merger elements are put into place with an Intergovernmental Cooperative Agreement. Watched like a hawk. The past mayor has proven he can't play well with others. And, the operations are not conducted in the light of public observation. Worry about last minute deals of a lame-duck mayor. What remains by 2006? The mayor and his administration is working hard, since sumemr of 2004, if not sooner, to eliminate many of the city's departments. :"We see this as the foundation of a lot of other opportunities to hopefully consolidate activities to the benefit of taxpayers," said Timothy Johnson, director of the county's General Services Administration. category:finance